James William Guercio (born July 18, 1945) is an American music producer, musician, songwriter and director. He is best known for his work as the producer of

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

's first eleven studio albums. He also produced the early recordings of

The Buckinghams The Buckinghams are an American pop band from Chicago. They formed in 1966 and went on to become one of the top-selling acts of 1967, charting their only five top 40 hits in the U.S. that year. The band dissolved in 1970, but re-formed in 1980 ...

and

Blood, Sweat & Tears Blood, Sweat & Tears (also known as "BS&T") is an American jazz rock music group founded in New York City in 1967, noted for a combination of brass with rock instrumentation. BS&T has gone through numerous iterations with varying personnel and ...

. In the mid-1970s, he managed

the Beach Boys The Beach Boys are an American Rock music, rock band formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian Wilson, Brian, Dennis Wilson, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and their f ...

and was a member of their backing band. Guercio has also worked in the motion picture industry as a producer and director. He is married to the former model Lucy Angle.

Early life and career

Guercio was born on July 18, 1945, in Chicago, Illinois, to James Guercio, Sr (1922-1998) and Grace Guercio (née Williams, 1923 – 2010). He is of Italian, German, Irish, Scottish, and English descent. He has four brothers and two sisters. As a child, he was friends with future

Styx In Greek mythology, Styx (; ; lit. "Shuddering"), also called the River Styx, is a goddess and one of the rivers of the Greek Underworld. Her parents were the Titans Oceanus and Tethys, and she was the wife of the Titan Pallas and the moth ...

keyboardist and vocalist

Dennis DeYoung Dennis DeYoung (born February 18, 1947) is an American singer, songwriter and keyboardist. He was a founding member of the rock band Styx and served as its primary lead vocalist and keyboardist from 1972 until 1999. DeYoung was the band's most ...

. In the 1960s, Guercio moved to Los Angeles and began working as a

session musician A session musician (also known as studio musician or backing musician) is a musician hired to perform in a recording session or a live performance. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a reco ...

and songwriter. He played on several recordings, wrote

Chad & Jeremy Chad & Jeremy were a British musical duo consisting of Chad Stuart and Jeremy Clyde, who began working in 1962 and had their first hit song in the UK with " Yesterday's Gone" (1963). That song became a hit in the United States in the following ...

's 1966 Top 30 pop hit " Distant Shores", and is listed as a "contributor" to

Frank Zappa Frank Vincent Zappa (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American guitarist, composer, and bandleader. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Zappa composed Rock music, rock, Pop music, pop, jazz, jazz fusion, orchestra ...

's 1966 debut album ''

Freak Out! ''Freak Out!'' is the debut studio album by the American rock band the Mothers of Invention, released on June 27, 1966, by Verve Records. Often cited as one of rock music's first concept albums, it is a satirical expression of guitarist/bandle ...

'' having briefly been a member of

the Mothers of Invention The Mothers of Invention (also known as the Mothers) were an American rock music, rock band from California. Formed in 1964, their work is marked by the use of sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Originally an ...

. Guercio was hired by

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American reco ...

as a staff producer, and in 1967 he worked with

as producer of the singles "

Don't You Care "Don't You Care" is a single by The Buckinghams from the album '' Time & Charges''. The song spent 14 weeks on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in 1967, reaching No. 6,

," "

Mercy, Mercy, Mercy "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy" is a jazz song written by Joe Zawinul (lyrics by Gail Fisher) in 1966 for Cannonball Adderley and which appears on his album '' Mercy, Mercy, Mercy! Live at "The Club"''. The song is the title track of the album and became ...

, " Hey Baby (They're Playing Our Song)" and "

Susan Susan is a feminine given name, the usual English version of Susanna or Susannah. All are versions of the Hebrew name Shoshana, which is derived from the Hebrew ''shoshan'', meaning ''lotus flower'' in Egyptian, original derivation, and severa ...

". Guercio attended

DePaul University DePaul University is a private university, private Catholic higher education, Catholic research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded by the Congregation of the Mission, Vincentians in 1898, the university takes its name from ...

, where he was a friend of saxophonist

Walter Parazaider Walter Parazaider (born March 14, 1945) is an American woodwind musician who is a founding member of the rock band Chicago. He is best known for being one-third of Chicago's brass/woodwind section alongside Lee Loughnane and James Pankow. Para ...

. Parazaider invited Guercio to hear his new band, The Big Thing, and Guercio offered to manage and produce them. In 1968 he relocated the band to Los Angeles and convinced them to change their name to The Chicago Transit Authority. While recording their first album for CBS/Columbia, Guercio was also approached about producing a second album for

. Both albums were released in 1969 and ''Blood, Sweat & Tears'' won Guercio an Album of the Year

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

. In 1969, Guercio shortened The Chicago Transit Authority's name to

and worked with them on a second album, ''

Chicago II ''Chicago'' (retroactively known as ''Chicago II'') is the second studio album by the American rock band Chicago, released on January 26, 1970, by Columbia Records. Like their debut album, ''Chicago Transit Authority'' (1969), it is a double album ...

''. The band became a commercial success and Guercio produced eleven more of their albums, including five number 1 pop albums, starting with ''

Chicago V ''Chicago V'' is the fourth studio album by the American rock band Chicago. It was released on July 10, 1972, by Columbia Records. It is the group's first single album release, after having released three consecutive double albums and a four-d ...

,'' and 17 Top 25 singles. In 1969, he met street poet and musician

Moondog Louis Thomas Hardin (May 26, 1916 – September 8, 1999), known professionally as Moondog, was an American composer, musician, performer, music theoretician, poet and inventor of musical instruments. Largely self-taught as a composer, his ...

and produced two albums for him, and also performed vocals with Moondog and his daughter. In November 1969, Guercio produced the

Firesign Theatre The Firesign Theatre (also known as the Firesigns) was an American surreal humour, surreal comedy troupe who first appeared on November 17, 1966, in a live performance on the Los Angeles radio program ''Radio Free Oz'' on station KPFK FM broad ...

's single, "Station Break." In April 1970, he produced the "Shoes for Industry" segment of their LP ''

Don't Crush That Dwarf, Hand Me the Pliers ''Don't Crush That Dwarf, Hand Me the Pliers'' is the Firesign Theatre's third comedy album, released by Columbia Records in July 1970. In 1983, ''The New Rolling Stone Record Guide'' called it "the greatest comedy album ever made". It was nom ...

''. Both ''Dwarf'' and Firesign's earlier '' How Can You Be in Two Places at Once When You're Not Anywhere at All'' were labelled "Poseidon Productions: A Division of James William Guercio Enterprises Inc." Guercio joined

The Beach Boys The Beach Boys are an American Rock music, rock band formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian Wilson, Brian, Dennis Wilson, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and their f ...

in the mid-1970s as their manager and played bass for them in live shows, before returning to work with Chicago. In 1976, Guercio earned two Grammy Awards for Chicago's single "

If You Leave Me Now "If You Leave Me Now" is a song by the American rock group Chicago, from their album ''Chicago X''. It was written and sung by bass player Peter Cetera and released as a single on July 30, 1976. It is also the title of a Chicago compilation alb ...

." In 1977, Guercio and Chicago parted ways after the band discovered that his contract was paying him 51% of profits, with the other 49% shared between the eight band members. In the CNN biography "Now More Than Ever: The History of Chicago", the group revealed that "millions of dollars" had gone to Guercio while he was their manager. He has also been accused of mismanagement by Chicago, having been found to have pocketed royalty payments for most of the band's tenure.

Other projects

Guercio directed and produced the 1973 film '' Electra Glide in Blue''. The film starred

Robert Blake Robert Blake (or variants) may refer to: Sports * Bob Blake (American football) (1885–1962), American football player * Robbie Blake (born 1976), English footballer * Bob Blake (ice hockey) (1914–2008), American ice hockey player * Rob Blake ...

and featured

Peter Cetera Peter Paul Cetera Jr. ( ; born September 13, 1944) is a retired American musician best known for being a frontman, vocalist, and bassist for the American rock band Chicago from 1967 until his departure in 1985. His career as a recording artist ...

and other members of Chicago in bit parts. The film was well received by critics. He also produced the 1981 Robert Blake film ''

Second-Hand Hearts ''Second-Hand Hearts'' is a 1981 American comedy film directed by Hal Ashby from a screenplay by Charles Eastman. A shorter version of this screenplay, under its original intended title ''The Hamster of Happiness'', was written by Eastman for t ...

.'' Guercio founded

Caribou Ranch Caribou Ranch was a recording studio built by producer James William Guercio in 1972 in a converted barn on ranch property in the Rocky Mountains near Nederland, Colorado, on the road that leads to the ghost town of Caribou. The studio was in op ...

, a recording studio in Colorado. The first radio hit recorded at Caribou was

Joe Walsh Joseph Fidler Walsh (born Joseph Woodward Fidler; November 20, 1947) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. Best known as a member of the rock band Eagles (band), Eagles, his five-decade career includes solo work and stints in other ...

's "

Rocky Mountain Way "Rocky Mountain Way" is a 1973 song by rock guitarist Joe Walsh and his band Barnstorm, with writing credits given to all four band members: Walsh, Rocke Grace, Kenny Passarelli, and Joe Vitale. The song was originally released on the album ...

." In addition to Chicago (starting with '' Chicago VI''), the studio has been used by numerous other artists, including

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, songwriter and pianist. His music and showmanship have had a significant, lasting impact on the music industry, and his songwriting partnership with l ...

(for his ''

Caribou The reindeer or caribou (''Rangifer tarandus'') is a species of deer with circumpolar distribution, native to Arctic, subarctic, tundra, boreal, and mountainous regions of Northern Europe, Siberia, and North America. It is the only represe ...

'' album as well as ''

Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy ''Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy'' is the ninth studio album by English musician Elton John, released on 23 May 1975 by DJM Records in the UK and MCA Records in the US. The album is an autobiographical account of the early musical ...

'' and ''

Rock of the Westies ''Rock of the Westies'' is the tenth studio album by English musician Elton John. It was released on 24 October 1975, through DJM Records in the UK and MCA Records in the US. Produced by Gus Dudgeon, the record was recorded in the summer of 19 ...

''),

Dan Fogelberg Daniel Grayling Fogelberg (August 13, 1951 – December 16, 2007) was an American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist widely known for his 1970s and 1980s soft rock hits, including " Longer" (1979), " Same Old Lang Syne" (1981), and " ...

Return to Forever Return to Forever was an American jazz fusion band that was founded by pianist Chick Corea in 1972. The band has had many members, with the only consistent bandmate of Corea's being bassist Stanley Clarke. Along with Weather Report, The Headhun ...

Billy Joel William Martin Joel (born May 9, 1949) is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Piano Man" after his Signature song, signature 1973 song Piano Man (song), of the same name, Joel has ha ...

Rod Stewart Sir Roderick David Stewart (born 10 January 1945) is a British singer and songwriter. Known for his distinctive raspy singing voice, Stewart is among the List of best-selling music artists, best-selling music artists of all time, having sold ...

Carole King Carole King Klein (born Carol Joan Klein; February 9, 1942) is an American singer-songwriter and musician renowned for her extensive contributions to popular music. She wrote or co-wrote 118 songs that charted on the Billboard Hot 100, ''Billbo ...

Stephen Stills Stephen Arthur Stills (born January 3, 1945) is an American musician, singer, and songwriter best known for his work with Buffalo Springfield; Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Crosby, Stills & Nash; Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young; and Manassas (band ...

Waylon Jennings Waylon Arnold Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He is considered one of the pioneers of the Outlaw country, outlaw movement in country music. Jennings started playing ...

Amy Grant Amy Lee Grant (born November 25, 1960) is an American singer-songwriter and musician. She began her music career in contemporary Christian music (CCM) before crossing over to pop music in the mid-1980s. Grant has been referred to as "Honorific ...

Supertramp Supertramp were a British rock band formed in London in 1970. Marked by the individual songwriting of founders Roger Hodgson (vocals, keyboards and guitars) and Rick Davies (vocals and keyboards), the group were distinguished for blending p ...

Badfinger Badfinger were a Welsh rock music, rock band formed in Swansea in 1961. Their best-known lineup consisted of Pete Ham (guitar), Mike Gibbins (drums), Tom Evans (musician), Tom Evans (bass), and Joey Molland (guitar). They are recognised for th ...

and

. In March 1985 the studio complex was shut down after a fire destroyed the control room and caused about $3 million of damage. In addition to the recording studio, Guercio also founded a record label,

Caribou Records Caribou Records was an American record label. It was owned by James William Guercio, who also owned Caribou Ranch recording studio and was the longtime manager of the band Chicago. Caribou was an imprint of CBS Records, now Sony Music; the label ...

, which released albums by the

Beach Boys The Beach Boys are an American rock band formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and their friend Al Jardine. Distinguished by thei ...

Carl Wilson Carl Dean Wilson (December 21, 1946 – February 6, 1998) was an American musician, singer, and songwriter who co-founded the Beach Boys. He was their lead guitarist, the youngest sibling of bandmates Brian Wilson, Brian and Dennis Wilson, ...

Dennis Wilson Dennis Carl Wilson (December 4, 1944 – December 28, 1983) was an American musician, singer, and songwriter who co-founded the Beach Boys. He was their drummer and the middle brother of bandmates Brian Wilson, Brian and Carl Wilson as well as ...

, the L.A. Express and a few other artists. In 1978, the Caribou Ranch lent its name to a pro soccer team, the

Colorado Caribous The Caribous of Colorado were an American soccer team that competed in the North American Soccer League (NASL) during the 1978 season. The team was based in Denver, Colorado and played their home games at Mile High Stadium. After the season ...

of the

North American Soccer League The North American Soccer League (NASL) was the top-level major professional soccer league in the United States and Canada that operated from 1968 to 1984. It is considered the first soccer league to be successful on a national scale in the ...

. Co-owned by Guercio and future

Washington state Washington, officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is often referred to as Washington State to distinguish it from the national capital, both named after George Washington ...

governor

Booth Gardner William Booth Gardner (August 21, 1936 – March 15, 2013) was an American politician who served as the 19th governor of Washington from 1985 to 1993. He also served as the ambassador of the GATT. A member of the Democratic Party, Gardner previ ...

, the Caribous finished in last place, drew poor crowds at

Mile High Stadium Mile High Stadium (originally Bears Stadium until 1968) was an outdoor multi-purpose stadium located in Denver, Colorado, from 1948 to 2002. The stadium was built in 1948 to accommodate the Denver Bears baseball team, which was a member of th ...

, and wore uniforms that were ridiculed by numerous observers (brown and tan, with a strip of leather fringe across the chest). After the 1978 season, Guercio and Booth sold the club to interests in Atlanta who renamed them the

Atlanta Chiefs The Atlanta Chiefs were an American professional soccer team based in Atlanta, Georgia. The team competed in the National Professional Soccer League (1967), National Professional Soccer League (NPSL) in 1967 and the North American Soccer League ...

. After the split-up with Chicago and the Caribou Ranch fire, Guercio pursued a career in cattle ranching, property development, oil and gas exploration, drilling, and production, particularly

coalbed methane ''Coalbed methane'' (CBM or coal-bed methane), coalbed gas, or coal seam gas (CSG) is a form of natural gas extracted from coal beds. In recent decades it has become an important source of energy in United States, Canada, Australia, and other co ...

wells. In the late 1980s, he purchased the

Country Music Television Country Music Television, often abbreviated to CMT, is an American pay TV network that launched on March 5, 1983. It is currently owned by Paramount Global through the MTV Entertainment Group unit of its networks division. CMT was the first na ...

(CMT) channel. In the early 1990s he sold CMT to media tycoon Ed Gaylord and Westinghouse Broadcasting.

References

External links

* *
The Unfamous Life of Alan DeCarlo p. II: The Guercio Factor">The Unfamous Life of Alan DeCarlo [Ep. II: The Guercio Factor
/nowiki>.at YouTube">p. II: The Guercio Factor
/nowiki>.">p. II: The Guercio Factor">The Unfamous Life of Alan DeCarlo [Ep. II: The Guercio Factor
/nowiki>.at YouTube. {{DEFAULTSORT:Guercio, James William Film directors from Illinois Film producers from Illinois American music managers Record producers from Illinois Songwriters from Illinois 1945 births Living people Grammy Award winners DePaul University alumni American entertainment industry businesspeople American rock bass guitarists American people of Italian descent Guitarists from Chicago American male bass guitarists 20th-century American bass guitarists 20th-century American male musicians American male songwriters